Shameless Self-Promotion

The Tucson Weekly picked up 14 awards in the Arizona Newspapers Association's 2006 Better Newspapers Contest. The results were announced Saturday, Oct. 14, during the ANA's annual convention in Scottsdale.

Tom Danehy picked up three awards in the category comprising non-daily newspapers with a circulation greater than 10,000. He won both first-place and second-place honors in the Best Sports Story category, for "Courting Trouble" (April 27, 2006) and "After the Collapse" (Nov. 24, 2005). He also picked up second place in the Best Team, Sport or Sports Beat Coverage category for his high school sports coverage. The judge noted: "Writer has an excellent style and shows off his command of the language. Articles range from hard-hitting, important pieces to lighthearted, enjoyable ones."

Jim Nintzel also earned first-place honors, in the Best News Story category, for "Meet Vernon Walker" (Aug. 25, 2005). The judge noted: "Loved this story. Well-written, great lead, well organized. Did I mention I really loved this story?" The late Chris Limberis won third place in that category for "Running on Empty" (June 16, 2005).

The newspaper's Web site earned top honors in the Best Newspaper Online Site/Web Page category. The Weekly picked up a trio of third-place awards in newspaper-wide categories: Departmental News/Copyediting Excellence, Reporting and News Writing Excellence, and Community Service/Journalistic Achievement (for comprehensive election coverage).

Weekly writers earned three of the six awards given in the Best Lifestyle Feature category. Margaret Regan picked up second place for "A Life Lived" (Dec. 1, 2005) and an honorable mention for "Priestly Tales" (March 16, 2006). Leo W. Banks also picked up an honorable mention for "A New Billy the Kid?" (April 13, 2006). Former staff photographer Tricia McInroy also earned honors for "A Life Lived," in the Best Feature Photograph category.

Brandon Kosters, 17 at the time his story was published, also earned an honorable mention for "My Katrina Diary" (Feb. 9, 2006) in the Best News Feature category. The judge noted: "As imagined, the feature category had a number of Katrina-related entries. This one stood out because of the personal flair."